The German government has banned major events until August 31st due to the coronavirus pandemic, putting doubt on whether Gamescom 2020 will run.
Organizers had previously stated Gamescom 2020 was still being prepared, with organizers monitoring local regulations and the virus’ spread. Later, they stated it would still go ahead “at least in a digital format,” with digital events being “significantly expanded.”
Now, German news website NTV (citing the German Press Agency) states that the German government has banned all major events until August 31st. Gamescom 2020 is set to take place from August 25th to 29th. Gamescom 2018 hosted 370,000 visitors, from 114 countries.
The article lists events such as soccer matches, other sporting events, festivals, and clubs. Individual states will decide what size venues will be affected by the ban. At this time, Gamescom organizers have not issued a statement. We will keep you informed as we learn more.
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic (also known as COVID-19 officially, or Chinese Flu to others) has affected many worldwide, from businesses to public gatherings and events. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]. This includes the postponement of GDC, and the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, along with the cancellation of E3 2020 (including digital events), and Comiket 98.
We also recently reported on an employee at Capcom’s Tokyo HQ contracted the virus, along with voice actor Rick May (Soldier in Team Fortress 2, Peppy Hare and Andross in Star Fox 64) passing away due to the virus. SiliconEra also reports a member of Capcom in Osaka also contracted the virus.
The Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering are mapping the virus’ spread [1, 2]. As of this time of writing, there have been over 2 million total confirmed cases worldwide, and over 1.371 million active cases. There have been over 128,000 deaths, however over 501,000 people have made a “total recovery.”
Germany has had over 132,500 cases (over 57,000 active cases), over 3,500 deaths, and over 72,000 recoveries.
Until otherwise stated, Gamescom 2020 will take place from August 25th to 29th, at Koelnmesse GmbH, Cologne.
Image: Twitter
